Buzz
Buzz was the bodyguard of Two Dead, a wizard colonel reporting to Whisper, in "Bone Candy". Buzz is a swift, intelligent, gigantic man with a very muscular build. His nickname, given to him by the Black Company, was a shortened form of Buzzard Neck, on account of his over-sized Adam's apple. He identified himself as Tesch, but this was a fabricated identity. Before he was in the army of the Lady's Empire, he was a Rebel wizard originally known as Essentially Capable Shiiraki, the Spellsmith, prior to and during the Battle of Charm. ''The Black Company'' During the Battle of Charm, Buzz, then known as Shiiraki, fought for the Rebel armies of the Circle of Eighteen. He was a summoner who brought forth demons or imps from the demon realms. He fought personally against Goblin at some point during the sprawling battle, as later revealed in "Bone Candy". Their fight must have been magic-against-magic, because Buzz is overly muscular and massive, whereas Goblin is diminutive. It might have been a stalemate or interrupted somehow, because both men escaped with their lives and seemingly unharmed. Buzz would use these events to fake his death, however, and even his own family believed he was deceased after the battle. He then took on the name "Tesch". One of the unnamed demonic entities he had summoned survived the infamous carnage and was brought before the Lady's Eye at the Tower, a decidedly unpleasant experience. Tesch was discovered, and when faced with execution, chose to fight for the Lady. He entered the ranks answering to Whisper and became the bodyguard of her favorite colonel, Shor Chodroze, better known in the Annals as Two Dead. "Bone Candy" Buzz arrived with Two Dead in Aloe to meet up with the Black Company which was garrisoned there. Two Dead's mission was to see if the Black Company had discovered the Port of Shadows, an escape route for the Dominator, and destroy it if possible. But Whisper had given Buzz secret orders to assassinate Two Dead, and take control of the Port for her own use. The Company was unaware of all of this at first, and they respected Buzz while disliking his boss. Goblin recognized Buzz from the Battle of Charm, and fled before he could be spotted. Buzz summoned the three chinkami, hideous beasts that were filled with dangerous beetles, to attack the Company and kill Two Dead. Another Company wizard, One-Eye, observed this and fled into hiding like Goblin did. After the summoning, Buzz consumed sweet wine that had been poisoned with firenz, and later, One-Eye put him in a deep sleep and fed him the juice of the poke plant, another poison. Buzz was unable to keep his bowels in order and his health disintegrated rapidly. He accompanied Two Dead, the Company physician, Croaker, and another wizard, Silent, when they went to investigate one of the chinkami. He feigned ignorance about the beast and soon went to "haunt" a latrine. Meanwhile, Goblin tapped into the demon worlds to learn about Buzz. He interrogated Buzz's "surviving familiar" (a demon or imp) which had served Buzz during his Rebel years, and learned about both his past, and his present mission. The Company physician, Croaker, eventually diagnosed the poke poisoning and had a new recruit named Corey keep Buzz hydrated. When Two Dead was bitten and stung by the dangerous beetles, Buzz convincingly feigned concern, despite the effects of the two poisons dragging down his own health. Although Corey continually provided him water for a full day without rest, Buzz becomes unresponsive. He is carried back into Croaker's clinic, where the physician is soon disappointed to learn from Goblin that Buzz was trying to set them up for the death of Two Dead. One-Eye supplies the antidote for the firenz, and they are confident that Buzz will survive if they keep him hydrated. Croaker comes to believe that the Captain, in league with the Lady, was the source of the firenz poisoning. The Captain wants Croaker to save his life, and will attempt to bring him over to the Company upon his recovery. Category:Characters Category:Wizards Category:Rebel Category:Imperials